Columbus, Franklin County residents advised to stay home to reduce COVID-19 cases

Columbus Health Commissioner Dr. Mysheika Roberts speaks at a press conference March 13 when she and Mayor Andrew Ginther announced a state of emergency for the city. Credit: Doral Chenoweth III/The Dispatch via TNS

Columbus and Franklin County will be under a stay-at-home advisory starting Friday at 6 p.m. to slow the spread of COVID-19 amid a rapid rise of cases and related hospitalizations.

Columbus Health Commissioner Dr. Mysheika Roberts announced the advisory in a tweet Wednesday and said the advisory will “help flatten the curve and get our cases back under control.”

That is why beginning on Friday, November 20 at 6 p.m., Columbus Public Health and Franklin County Public Health are advising all residents of Columbus and Franklin County to stay at home due to the rapid rise of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in the city and county.

— Mysheika Roberts, MD, MPH (@DrMRoberts) November 18, 2020

There have been 460 new cases reported in Columbus as of Tuesday, according to the city’s COVID-19 dashboard.

“I am asking all of you to join me – and all of us – in staying home and saving lives,” Roberts said.

Gov. Mike DeWine issued a statewide curfew from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. which will start Thursday and last for three weeks. Those who are traveling to work, experiencing an emergency or going to the grocery are exempt. The Ohio Department of health reported 7,079 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday, for a 21-day average of 5,224 new cases per day.

Ohio State is also recommending students limit travel on and off campus and limit contact with people outside their residences. The university is reporting a seven-day average of 84 new COVID-19 cases per day, reaching more than 150 new cases per day multiple times in the past seven reporting days.